London Metropolitan Business School

Transcription

1 North Campus London Metropolitan Business Shool Publi Relations Single Honours Degree Course Handbook For admission to Certifiate Level in PBR4N

2 Undergraduate Aademi Year AUTUMN SEMESTER Start - End Welome Programme 22 September September 2011 Teahing 3 Otober Deember 2011 Christmas Break 19 Deember January 2012 Teahing/revision 9 January January 2012 Examinations 16 January February 2012 SPRING SEMESTER Welome Programme (new February entrants only) 30 January February 2012 Teahing 6 February Marh 2012 Easter Break 2 April April 2012 Teahing 16 April May 2012 Teahing/revision 8 May May 2012 Examinations 14 May June 2012 RESIT PERIOD Resit Examinations 16 July July 2012 Reassessment Coursework deadline 27 July 2012 In addition to these fixed dates, please note the following events during the year: November Deember February/ Marh April/May June/July August September Modules registered for Autumn Semester visible on Evision (any omissions in your reord should be reported to your Undergraduate Offie). Confirmation of Spring Semester programme of studies where option hoies are available Publiation of Autumn Semester exam timetables Publiation of results of Autumn Semester assessments Confirmation of programme of studies for next aademi year. Publiation of exam timetables for Spring Semester Publiation of results of Spring Semester assessments. Publiation of July reassessment exam timetables. Continuing students may print off a reord of their modules and results from Evision; offiial ertified transripts available on request from the Undergraduate Offies (fee payable). All students ompleting their award will be sent offiial transripts Instrutions for re-enrolment sent to ontinuing students Publiation of results of July reassessments or late assessments Exat dates and deadlines available via

3 KEY CONTACTS Undergraduate Offie: Stapleton House Undergraduate Offie Administration Manager of the Undergraduate Offie: Sara Carruthers Faulty Administrative Offie: SHG-36 Course Leader: Roz Graham Course Leader s Offie: TBC Main Campus teahing loation: Stapleton House Personal Aademi Advisers (PAAs) for this Course: Abu Naser PAA Co-ordinator for this ourse: Tony Cryer

4 CONTENTS 1.0 WELCOME TO YOUR COURSE AND FACULTY 1.1 Using Your Handbook 1.2 Introdution to the Course 1.3 Undergraduate Degree Courses 1.4 Our approah to skills 1.5 Personal Development Planning (PDP) 1.6 Introdution to your Faulty 1.7 Loation and Faulty Failities supporting the ourse 1.8 Learning and Teahing on the Course 1.9 Researh in your Faulty 2.0 BEING A STUDENT 2.1 Welome Programme Cheklist 2.2 Your first semester 2.3 Attendane, aademi engagement and employment 2.4 Studying 2.5 Building Careers 2.6 Enrolment and Re-enrolment 2.7 Credit for previous learning 2.8 Modules 2.9 Module registration, ourse planning and approval 2.10 Your Timetable 2.11 Publiation of Results and Transripts 3.0 MANAGING YOUR ACADEMIC LIFE ON-LINE 3.1 Your University IT Aount 3.2 Communiation 3.3 Your Contat Details 3.4 Evision 3.5 WebLearn Online module resoures 3.6 StARS 3.7 Course Committees 3.8 Students views on modules and ourses 4.0 SOURCES OF INFORMATION AND ADVICE 4.1 Undergraduate Offie 4.2 Personal Aademi Advisers (PAAs) 4.3 Course Leader 4.4 Module Leturers 4.5 Student Suess through Learning Development 4.6 Student Servies 4.7 Disabilities and Inlusion 4.8 Plaements/study abroad 5.0 MARKING AND ASSESSMENT 5.1 Aademi Regulations 5.2 Marking and grades 5.3 Your responsibilities onerning Assessment 5.4 Aademi Misondut 5.5 Assessment Feedbak 5.6 Submission of oursework 5.7 Examination Timetable 5.8 Past Examination Papers 5.9 Mitigating Cirumstanes 5.10 Assessment Board Appeals 5.11 Ation in the event of failure to pass a module 5.12 University Criteria for Awards

5 5.13 Withdrawal from a module 5.14 Intermission of Studies 5.15 Mode of Study 5.16 Course Transfers 6.0 STUDY RESOURCES AND FACILITIES 6.1 Libraries and Speial Colletions 6.2 Aademi Liaison Librarians and Subjet Guides 6.3 Student feedbak 6.4 ICT Servies and Media Resoures 6.5 Open Language Programme 6.6 Eletive Studies 6.7 European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) 7.0 COURSE SPECIFICATION 8.0 USEFUL INFORMATION 9.0 DIRECTORY OF MODULES FOR THE COURSE 10.0 INDEX OF KEY SOURCES OF INFORMATION 10.1 Relevant University Proedures: 10.2 Useful online information:

6 1 1.0 WELCOME TO YOUR COURSE AND FACULTY This is the Course Handbook for the BA(Hons) Publi Relations. The staff of the London Metropolitan Business Shool warmly welome you to London Metropolitan University North Campus and to the study of Publi Relations. 1.1 Using Your Handbook Your Course Handbook ontains a wealth of information. Some of it will be of more relevane to you later in the ourse than at the start of your studies. You an aess your Course Handbook either by logging into your Evision aount ( or via the University s website at: This handbook overs many of the questions you will have about your ourse and Setions 3.0 and 4.0 in partiular help you loate the advie you may need. Setion 10.0 ontains an Index of key soures of information. For more detailed information you will sometimes need to onsult other soures, inluding: University Student Handbook - for details of important University regulations and proedures. It also provides information on university life and the support servies available. The University Student Handbook an be aessed at: Undergraduate Students webpage a omprehensive on-line resoure for undergraduate students. Provides information about, ourse strutures, modules and timetables. Please see: Module Catalogue provides omprehensive details of all modules in the University s undergraduate portfolio. Please see: The Course Speifiation (Setion 7.0 of this handbook) defines the key features of your ourse, its aims, struture and learning outomes, and identifies all the modules you must study for the award. All undergraduate ourses are governed by the University s Aademi Regulations It is your responsibility to be fully aware of the regulations, whih govern your studies as an undergraduate student of the University. Your ourse may have some additional ourse speifi regulations or may be governed by a Professional Body. Where relevant, these are inluded in paragraph 32 of the Course Speifiation at Setion 7.0 of this Handbook. You should also note that oasionally, the details in this Handbook, inluding the Course Speifiation, may subsequently be amended or revised, in order to improve the Course. The University is reviewing undergraduate eduation as part of its ommitment to enhaning learning. This will affet the Intermediate level (level 5) of your ourse in and Honours level (level 6) in From there will be 3 terms instead of 2 semesters, with 30 weeks of sheduled teahing. You remain on the same ourse, with the same title. We have also updated and revised the urriulum and you will be advised during Certifiate level (level 4) of the preise hanges for and 13-14, during We would enourage you to partiipate as a Student Representative for your year of the ourse (see Setion 3.7). We welome omments about the ourse or any suggestions for improvements. We wish you every suess in your studies.

7 2 1.2 Introdution to the Course The philosophy of the BA Publi Relations suite of awards is to provide you with a rigorous undergraduate eduation in Publi Relations whilst providing a suitable foundation from whih you an build a range of areers in either onsultany or lient-side private or publi setor. It should be remembered that Publi Relations is onerned primarily with organisational reputation and as suh arries its disiplines into a muh wider organisational spetrum than, say, Marketing. In pursuit of this objetive the Course has been designed to provide an aademially oherent programme of undergraduate study. Reognition of this award by the Chartered Institute of Publi Relations is a key short-term objetive. Key transferable skills and students' employability are developed throughout the ourse, in partiular through the 'graduate attributes', whih are a feature of all modules, and through opportunities for gaining relevant work experiene. Students reord their aademi ahievement and personal development in a 'Personal Development Plan', whih supplements their award and transript of results. This is an exiting time to be studying Publi Relations. The disipline ontinues to grow in ommerial importane, you are about to embark on a reently-established tailor-made ourse of study and you will be doing so at one of the UK s foremost Business Shools as reognised by the QAA. 1.3 Undergraduate Degree Courses The University s undergraduate degree ourses are part of a ommon redit aumulation system. Students build up the redits needed for a degree, module by module and must suessfully omplete the requirements of eah level before progressing to the next. Standard modules arry 15 redits and a degree omprises 360 redits. Study an be full time or part time and, for a few ourses, evening only. Your degree ourse is organised into three levels: Certifiate Level (Level 4) represents the introdutory level of your ourse. It provides a firm foundation for more advaned study of your subjet. Guided by your tutor in a ompulsory (ore) Higher Eduation Orientation module, you also begin a proess of personal development planning. Certifiate Level modules are normally studied during the first year of a full time Honours Degree ourse. Intermediate Level (Level 5) develops your intelletual and imaginative powers, your understanding, judgement and problem solving skills, as well as your ommuniation skills and a deepening awareness of your subjet. It builds on what you have already learned and gives more opportunity to speialise. Attention is also given to your future employability and professional pratie and your personal development planning in a ompulsory (ore) Employability module. Intermediate Level modules are normally studied during the seond year of a full time Honours degree ourse. Honours Level (Level 6) is the most advaned undergraduate level. Modules are designed to develop and test independent judgement and ritial awareness and to develop an enquiring, analytial and reative approah to learning. You are expeted to reognise relationships in what you have learned, to synthesise and integrate information and to view your subjet(s) of study in a broader perspetive. You arry out individual researh projets and ativities in preparation for employment or further study on postgraduate or professional ourses. As part of the ompulsory (ore) Projet module, you refine your personal development planning ativities to aid appliation for employment or further study. Honours Level modules are normally studied during the third year of a full time Honours degree ourse.

8 3 The aademi year is split into two semesters, eah of fifteen weeks. The Autumn semester runs from September to January and the Spring semester, from February to June. Full time students study four modules per semester, eight modules a year; part-time students take one, two or three modules per semester. Your degree ontains a number of ore modules, whih are ompulsory. Optional modules an be designate (hosen from a designated list for your ourse) or eletive (any module available in the University (see Setion 2.8). Your Personal Aademi Adviser (see Setion 4.2), is available to help you to prepare your programme of studies, seleting modules whih math interests and strengths identified through your personal development planning. 1.4 Our approah to skills Your ourse has been designed to develop the following graduate attributes, whih researh shows employers require: - Self aware: you should be able to reognise your personal strengths and present yourself in a onfident manner (see - Performing in a variety of idioms and ontexts: you should be able to at and ommuniate in ways appropriate to partiular ontexts (see - Creative and ethial: you should be able to make effetive ontributions and reative hanges, with an awareness of ethial, moral and ultural issues (see All your modules ontribute to the development of one or more of these attributes, through the proesses of developing and pratising knowledge and understanding ognitive and intelletual skills, transferable skills and some subjet speifi pratial skills. 1.5 Personal Development Planning (PDP) In your first semester you begin the proess of personal development planning and start to build up a reord of ahievements. The aim is to help you reflet on how things are going, what you are learning, and to start to reognise onsiously the knowledge and skills that you are aquiring. You an use the proess to help you reord and reflet upon the full range of learning ativities in whih you engage, inluding study, voluntary work, paid work, leisure and general interests. In eah year of your ourse there is a module in whih part of the assessment onsists of work based on your personal development ativities. Throughout your ourse you should regularly review your personal development plans and you may wish to disuss them with your Personal Aademi Adviser. For projets or work plaements you an also review your progress with your Supervisor. In the first semester PDP will be introdued in your HE Orientation module. The proess of pdp will be useful for writing up your Curriulum Vitae (CV), reminding you of ahievements to mention to prospetive employers and as a diary to refer bak to in the future. Your Personal Aademi Adviser will find it equally useful when writing referenes for you. 1.6 Introdution to your Faulty Following its suessful launh in August 2007, London Metropolitan Business Shool (LMBS) beame one of the largest Business Shools in Europe with ambitions and apabilities to math this international profile.

9 4 With over 200 full-time aademi staff, 9,000 students, and a wide seletion of distintive undergraduate and postgraduate ourses, LMBS ontinues our tradition of being a major and omprehensive provider of business and management eduation in the ountry. We are the only mainstream UK Business Shool loated within the ity of London. Our vision is to be the leading international Business Shool in our hosen markets, through innovation and the development of global networks. Our mission is to enable individuals and organisations to realise their potential through the provision of exellent business and management eduation. A key feature sine our launh has been the growth in our external networking reah to inlude a signifiant number of high profile Visiting Professors drawn largely from the private and publi setors. They impat on our urriulum, engage in master lasses, and provide plaement opportunities for some of our ablest students. For example, over the past three years four students have spent month long plaements at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) shadowing the Chief Eonomist there (who is a Visiting Professor) and working on researh projets. Another Visiting Professor, highly plaed within the Institute of Diretors (IOD) has provided opportunities for a number of our students to benefit from networking losely with that organisation. A more reent initiative is to enhane our lose business onnetions further by getting external organisations more diretly involved and assoiated with our urriulum ontent and delivery. Whilst LMBS remains ommitted to serving London s business ommunities it also has an international reah with global researh and ollaborative partners. Indeed, this is as it should be given the global ity status of London with its strong loal-global links and international business-finane-ultural-onsumer orientation. Indeed, students studying with us in London get the opportunity to be at the heart of what has been alled the world s favourite market plae. 1.7 Loation and Business Shool Failities Supporting the Course LMBS is urrently based at two University ampuses. At the City ampus, the Shool is loated in the Moorgate Building and at the North ampus, in Stapleton House. Teahing mainly takes plae in these buildings but large lasses may be timetabled in other University buildings on the respetive ampuses. A key feature of the LMBS student experiene is the provision of resoures to enhane learning. As well as a well-stoked library and modern ICT labs using utting-edge tehnology, our failities inlude a Bloomberg Researh Trading Room where you an get hands-on experiene of a dealing room. All ourses are supported by a virtual learning environment, Weblearn, and we ontinue to invest in learning materials and platforms. Currently we are working with our ounterparts at other Universities and with outside agenies to enhane our eletroni learning resoures further. Aommodation and failities for students at eah site inlude leture theatres, lassrooms, learning resoures, administrative and student support failities and refreshment and soial failities. At Moorgate and Stapleton House you an also find the offies of our employer engagement unit 'Business Works' - whih has links with a large number of ompanies and organisations and assists students in obtaining work plaements and internships, provides networking opportunities, organises employability events, enterprise related ativities, and other areer-faing ommuniation platforms. Business Shool students also benefit from the modern failities in the wider University. These inlude the Graduate Shool, designed by the world renowned arhitet Daniel Libeskind, and new sports and fitness failities loated in the state of the art Siene Centre. 1.8 Learning and Teahing on the Course LMBS endeavours to provide students with an exellent learning experiene that is urrent, aademially hallenging and voationally relevant. An emphasis is also plaed upon developing students personal transferable skills and attributes in order that they an progress to rewarding areers. We work in partnership with students to develop their knowledge and skill set, provide value-added experienes, and enhane their future employment opportunities. We strongly enourage students to engage in extraurriular ativity and

10 5 have a large number of vibrant and thriving student soieties within the Business Shool whih have a voational and pratitioner orientation. Our students also have the opportunity to engage in national ompetitions suh as the IBM Business Challenge and Prine's Trust. The most reent subjet review of our teahing, student support and ourse provision by the UK Government s Quality Assurane Ageny awarded business and management eduation top marks and so plaed it in the top 5% of UK Business Shools. In addition, the Shool s ommitment to teahing has been reognized nationally and is refleted in the award of National Teahing Fellowships, Leturer of the Year, and other awards to staff. LMBS offers one of the most omprehensive portfolios of undergraduate ourses in the UK with study opportunities delivered by eight sizeable subjet groups looking at the business world from a variety of onneted perspetives: Aounting and Business Law Eonomis Finane and Finanial Servies Management, Strategy and Leadership Business Analysis, Information Systems, Transport and Logistis Human Resoure Management Marketing and Communiations Tourism, Sport and Creative Industries We strive to offer flexible degree shemes, ommitted and expert teahing, a supportive learning environment, and strong links with employers and professional bodies, ensuring urreny, relevane and a ommitment to providing the maximum professional areditation and exemption opportunities for our students that we are able. As stated earlier, we reognise the need to develop the employability of our students and all ourses are purposely designed to develop both subjet and transferable skills, suh as team-working and ommuniation, whih are so valued by employers. The Business Shool has strong links with employers and professional bodies. We enourage students to take advantage of opportunities for gaining work experiene whilst on their ourse. To this end our Business Works unit is available to offer assistane to students in obtaining plaements and internships. Reent employers we have worked with inlude Air Frane, Arsenal Football Club, Barlays Bank, BBC Worldwide, Chester Boyd, HSBC, Limelight Projets, Orient Express and the Hilton Hotel Group. We an also help students seure work experiene abroad. Reent overseas based employers of our students inlude: Disney Florida and Paris, Rail Europe, DICR Europe Ltd, Euroity Consultants (Brussels), Dunas Hotel (Grand Canaria), Siemens (Germany), Orient Express Hotels and Trains and Cruises Worldwide. Professional bodies we work with inlude the Assoiation of Chartered Certified Aountants, Chartered Institute of Management Aountants, Chartered Institute of Marketing, Chartered Institute of Publi Relations, Chartered Institute of Purhasing and Supply, Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, British Aademy of Management and Royal Aeronautial Soiety. Although muh of the world an now be found in London, we do reognise that students an greatly benefit from studying abroad. The University s study abroad programmes provide students with an opportunity to study in another ountry and further strengthen their CVs. Some exhanges are supported finanially and teahing is in English. Whatever ourse you are following, the opportunity exists to study in Europe for a semester under the Erasmus/ Sorates shemes.

11 6 For those that remain in London for their studies they will be able to exhange ideas with students from over 100 ountries. Additionally, through our links with universities throughout the world, alongside the fat that LMBS staff reflet an international outlook and/or bakground, and have experiene of teahing in a global ity, means that muh of our urriulum ontent is underpinned by reognition of the global trends impating on the business world. Given the above, it should ome as no surprise to find that our graduates an be found working in many ountries and in all setors of the eonomy. Some of the organisations where our students have found employment inlude: BP, Coutts Bank, Daiwa, Deloitte and Touhe, Deutshe Morgan Grenfell, Forte UK, Marks and Spener, Rank Xerox, Royal Bank of Sotland, and Virgin. 1.9 Researh in the Business Shool Researh is a very important aspet of the Business Shool s work. It underpins the urriulum, sustains exellene in our teahing, supports onsultany, promotes relations with national and international partners and sustains an aademi and intelletual ethos within the Shool. Researh in the Business Shool is wide ranging in terms of the issues we address. We are, however, developing a distintive profile and reputation around a number of researh themes whih haraterise our mission, values and subjet strengths, inluding eonomis, finanial servies, entrepreneurship, soial enterprise, ultural and reative industries, world markets, governane, sustainability, orporate soial responsibility, employment and equal opportunities, business analysis, professional and managerial pratie and pedagogy. Through multi and inter-disiplinary researh we an address real-world problems whih are rarely amenable to single disiplinary solutions. Our partnerships with orporate, publi setor and other eduational organisations also provide us with a strong base for arrying out poliy and pratie-based and transnational researh. Researh in the Business Shool is mainly organised around a number of Researh Centres. Currently these are: Cities Institute Management Researh Centre (MRC) Comparative Organisation and Equality Researh Centre (COERC) Centre for International Business and Sustainability (CIBS) Centre for Corporate Responsibility (CCR) Transport Researh and Consultany (TRaC) Centre for Researh in Marketing (CERMARK) Centre for Business Eduation Researh (CEBER) Centre for Researh in Cultural Industries Management (CeRCIM) Centre for Europe, Middle East and Afria (EMEA): Banking, Eonomis and Finane Centre for Researh in Afrian Business (proposed) These Centres undertake pure and applied researh and onsultany in their fields. They also organise workshops, seminars and onferenes, often with a strong international dimension, produe working papers and reports and publish artiles in aademi and pratitioner journals. Senior staff are also represented on the editorial boards of these publiations. 2.0 BEING A STUDENT 2.1 Welome Programme Cheklist Following the Welome Programme and Course Introdutory Meetings, you should hek that you have reeived the following: an ID ard (inluding library number and omputer network username) a programme of study onfirming your registered modules

12 7 a personal timetable hek you have 4 modules if you are studying full time the loation of your Undergraduate Offie the loation of your Faulty Administrative Offie the loation of your main Learning Centre (Library) and IT failities the name of your Personal Aademi Adviser the name of your Course Leader If you miss your Welome Programme you still need to obtain all of the above items and there will be a Late Welome Session for you. Contat your designated Undergraduate Offie to ensure that you know what to do and where to go. It is very important that you omplete the enrolment proess as this is what ativates your status as a student and ensures that you appear on module lasslists et. 2.2 Your first semester Classes ommene on 3 Otober 2011 and your timetable will list all the lasses that you are required to attend. You will meet the module leturers, who will often be giving the main leture for the module, and your module tutors, who will take your group tutorials/seminars/workshops. During the first semester you will also meet your Personal Aademi Adviser who is available to disuss aademi planning and the modules for the seond semester. 2.3 Attendane, aademi engagement and employment Your suess depends upon full and regular attendane at all lasses, seminars, letures, workshops, tutorials and the ompletion of all of your module assessment(s). The University s Aademi Regulations make it lear that regular, uninterrupted attendane and full aademi engagement are requirements of your registration on your ourse. You should inform your Undergraduate Offie as soon as possible if you have problems with attendane or oping with your ourse. Your Undergraduate Offie may, in turn, arrange for you to see your Personal Aademi Adviser or other relevant departments, for example Student Servies. Our experiene shows that students who do not fully attend lasses and engage with their studies are at very high risk of failure. If you are absent from lass you an expet to be ontated by your Undergraduate Offie or Personal Aademi Adviser. You should also be aware that failure to meet the requirements for study on your ourse, both in terms of regular attendane and the ompletion of assessment(s), will jeopardise your registration on your ourse. Please note that the University will start taking deisions on termination of registration for unsatisfatory attendane as early as the end of the seond week of the semester. If you are a fulltime student, you must attend all eight modules that form your programme of study and submit all of your module assessments. Equally, if you are a part-time student you must attend all the modules that form your programme of study and submit all the assessments for eah of those modules. Please note - for international students, the University is required by the UK Border Ageny (UKBA) to onfirm that you are in regular attendane. Failure to attend lasses may lead to the UKBA anelling your student visa. Attendane at lasses is logged on a weekly basis and you will be able to view your attendane information on your Evision aount. If you annot attend lasses for any reason, you must inform your Undergraduate Offie at the earliest opportunity, so that this an be reorded. The University looks arefully at the evidene of your attendane and aademi engagement at regular points through the year, and students who fall below the requirements will be withdrawn from the ourse and required to leave the University. In partiular full time students who do not pass at least 4 modules (60 redits) during their first year of study will not be able to ontinue on the ourse.

13 8 We reognise that you may need to undertake part-time work, but strongly advise you not to take employment of more than 15 hours a week if you are a full-time student (should you need to take employment of more than 15 hours per week we reommend you register as a part-time student). The University s Employment Servie, in Student Servies, an help you find a suitable part-time job that an enhane your employability and omplement your studies Studying Your ourse will provide opportunities to learn new skills and aquire knowledge in your hosen subjet areas. To make the most of the opportunities available, you need to organise and plan your learning using personal development planning proesses to help you manage your time effetively. Undertaking aademi study at undergraduate level may be new and very different from your previous study experienes. Assessment is a key aspet of this learning. Suessful ompletion of oursework and examinations is ruial to the ahievement of an award at the end of your ourse. There are various types of assessment and modules often involve a ombination of examination and oursework or presentation. It is important that you understand learly the various expetations and deadlines for eah item of assessment. Every module has a Module Booklet, whih explains how and when you will be assessed. You must attend all timetabled lasses and you will also need to study in your own time. You should expet to spend 10 hours per week on eah module, making a ommitment of approximately 40 hours per week for a full-time student, whih should be planned in your diary. Please be respetful of the learning environment and remember to swith off your mobile phone before entering lasses and study areas. Be prepared for letures and tutorials by doing any reading or exerises in advane. Always make notes. Review these after the lass and if there is anything you do not understand, ask your tutor. All tutors have offie hours and their ontat details are in the Module Booklet. Chek assignment deadlines and examination dates, note them arefully in your diary and begin assignments early. You will enjoy researhing and planning your work if you allow yourself plenty of time. Make sure that you understand what you need to do and plan how you will takle it. If anything needs larifiation, seek advie from your module leturer. In summary: plan your learning strategy; alloate enough time; attend all of your module letures, tutorials and other sessions; start assignments well in advane; seek advie and help when you need it; use the learning resoures offered; and, enjoy the learning experiene! 2.5 Building Careers Your future employment is important. We prepare you for transition to employment by developing the attributes and skills that employers need and by training your mind to deal with omplex questions. Your ourse is designed with the involvement of employers and you will take a ourse speifi employability module at Intermediate level and also have the opportunity of taking an optional work plaement module. In your final year you may arry out a problem solving projet. You develop teamwork, ommuniation and presentational skills throughout your ourse. You need to be effetive and adaptable in hallenging times, so we offer areer planning servies and lots of opportunities to develop yourself to get on the job ladder. To failitate this further, our Student Servies organise reruitment fairs where you have the opportunity to meet with employers diretly. To see more details on how we prepare you for employability visit:

14 9 2.6 Enrolment and Re-enrolment Enrolment is an annual proess. The first time you enrol you will need to provide evidene of your identity and the qualifiations whih formed the basis of your offer from the University. You will also need to pay your tuition fees or demonstrate how these will be paid. The University ID ard you reeive at enrolment ontains your library number and omputer network username and allows entry to the University s buildings. Provided you fully ompleted the enrolment requirements your ard should work throughout the year. If it stops working then please seek advie from your Undergraduate Offie. By signing the enrolment form you onfirm that you aept and will follow the University s regulations If you are progressing satisfatorily on your ourse, re-enrolment takes plae before the start of eah aademi year. You an do this online, usually from around mid-august. Re-enrolment is neessary for your ID ard to be reativated for the new aademi year. There will be a deadline for this so it is important that you omplete this before the start of the next aademi year. 2.7 Credit for previous learning If you already hold a qualifiation (for example from another university), that may exempt you from part of your ourse, you may apply for Areditation of Prior Certifiated Learning (APCL). Similarly, if you have undertaken work, paid or voluntary, that has resulted in learning skills or knowledge equivalent to a module you will be studying, you may apply for Areditation of Prior Experiential Learning (APEL). Colletively these are known as Areditation of Prior Learning (APL). If you wish to laim for APL please ontat your Undergraduate Offie or refer to the Index (Setion 10.1) of this handbook for further information. 2.8 Modules Most first year students will have a programme of modules already registered for the whole year. For those studying full-time this is normally 4 modules (60 redits) in eah semester. Part-time students and those who have exemptions based on prior study or experiene may need to selet modules at the start of the year. The struture of your ourse (or the struture of the two subjets if you are studying a joint degree) is printed in this Course Handbook but up to date information about the modules you need to study is best found by following the links at You will enounter the following terms as part of hoosing modules: a) Core You must study these ompulsory modules in order to meet the requirements of your award. b) Designate Designate modules are modules whih must be hosen from a speified list (normally 2-4 modules). You must meet any pre-requisite requirements for these modules. ) Eletive Many ourses give the opportunity to study modules from other areas to enable students to broaden their experiene and these are alled eletives. It is possible to selet bloks of modules in Enterprise, Ethis or Citizenship or you may opt for our Open Language Programme. If eletive module(s) are available on your ourse they an be hosen from any listed in the Module Catalogue for whih you meet the pre-requisite requirements. See

15 10 d) Pre-requisite These are modules whih normally must be passed/ompleted before you may proeed to study a subsequent module(s). This is to ensure that you have an appropriate level of knowledge to study the later module(s). If your ourse ontains designate/eletive module hoies these are onfirmed through a programme planning proess (see below). You must agree your programme when requested and annot re-enrol without onfirming your module hoies before the start of eah year. 2.9 Module registration, ourse planning and approval In the first semester of your ourse, if you are studying full time, your programme of modules is already set while part-time students and those entering with redit will have sessions to register modules as part of the Welome Programme. As you progress on your ourse, you will be able to hoose some of your modules. As a new student you will reeive your personal timetable in a printed format as part of the Welome Programme and this will list the times and rooms for all letures, seminars and other taught lasses. Please get in touh with your Undergraduate Offie if you have not reeived one or are not sure where you should be going. Full-time students will also be registered for a programme of modules for the Spring Semester there will be an opportunity to hange the optional modules reorded for you towards the end of the Autumn Term. Before the start of eah year, returning students programme plan by onfirming any option hoies available to them; this is done through your Undergraduate Offie and if you need advie or support in planning your programme this will be given, in the first instane, by your Course Administrator in your Undergraduate Offie. You will be referred to your Personal Aademi Adviser if required. One your programme is onfirmed an individual personal timetable is generated for you. You an hek your list of registered modules, and your results, on line using Evision (Setion 3.4 below). You an attend only those modules for whih you have registered and if you miss the registration deadline you may not be allowed to register your preferred modules. One registered, there is a very limited opportunity (i.e. no later than the end of week 2 of the first semester of the aademi year) in whih to hange, or withdraw from, modules. These rules minimise disruption and aid planning. It is your responsibility to ensure you have an approved programme of study, whih, for full time students will, normally onsists of four modules per semester. Part time students study one, two or three modules per semester. Further information and a guide to module registration an be found online: The Module Catalogue gives the full list of modules available: Your Timetable The University timetable operates from 9.00 am to 9.00 pm, Monday to Friday Provided that you enrolled at the required time, your first semester timetable will be supplied in the Welome Programme at the third Course Introdutory Meeting. Your timetable will hange eah semester and will be available before the start of the semester. For your personal timetable, visit: If you do not have a timetable please ontat your Undergraduate Offie without delay Publiation of Results and Transripts At the end of eah semester Assessment Boards onfirm marks and awards. The Undergraduate Offies are responsible for issuing these results via Evision: (refer 3.4 below).

16 11 An offiial transript will be posted to you at your home address on the ompletion of your ourse. There is no harge for this end of ourse transript but a fee will be payable for any subsequent transripts. For reasons of employment or to provide proof of study at the University during your ourse, you may need a formal transript, stamped by the Undergraduate Offie. There is a fee for these transripts, payable at the time of request. Requests should be made to the Undergraduate Offie, who aim to produe transripts within 5 working days of request.

17 MANAGING YOUR ACADEMIC LIFE ON-LINE 3.1 Your University IT Aount You use the same aount to aess all University IT systems. Your aount name is printed at the top of on the ID ard that you reeive at enrolment and is 7 haraters in length (e.g. ABC1234). Your password will be set initially to be your date of birth (DDMMYYYY) so you should hange to something seure when you first log in. You an hange your password and set details for resetting your password at: Communiation We do our best to keep you informed of what you need to know at all times. We use the Web to provide muh of the information you need so it is essential to familiarise yourself with the University website. At other times we will use to ontat you so it is essential that you hek your University on a regular basis. 3.3 Your Contat Details The University will ontat you by letter, phone, or , perhaps to arrange a meeting, to provide you with information, or to respond to a query. It is therefore essential that you keep your ontat details up to date on your student Evision aount. Inreasingly, we use to ommuniate and keep you informed. You will also have been alloated a University address, whih is your 7 harater aount (see 3.1 above) e.g. ABC1234@my.londonmet.a.uk. Even if you already have an aount that you will ontinue to use you should regularly hek your London Met aount or set up an auto forward, as important messages will be sent to your University address. 3.4 Evision Evision is the University s online faility that allows you to aess your personal student reord, and is where you print your oursework submission sheets and other forms that you may need. You also re-enrol via Evision and view information showing your attendane at lasses. You an view your: Personal and ontat details (an be updated online) Registered modules Enrolment and progression Details of your Personal Aademi Adviser Tuition fee details Reord of oursework deadlines and submissions Mitigating Cirumstanes deisions Module results (available from notified date of publiation) Details of final award For more information please hek: WebLearn Online module resoures WebLearn provides online support for your modules, enabling you to ommuniate with your tutor and other students. Course materials, information and assessments are available on WebLearn as well as study programmes materials and suh as Writing and Communiating at University. WebLearn requires your user name and password and an be aessed at:

18 13 THE STUDENT VOICE 3.6 StARS Feedbak from students is vital to the University to find out how well the teahing, guidane and other servies are working. This is obtained in different ways, inluding via Student Aademi Representatives (StARs) who, supported by the Students Union, provide diret feedbak from students on the ourse and raise any issues on their behalf. You will have the opportunity to stand for eletion as a StAR or to elet a fellow student. 3.7 Course Committees A Course Committee is normally onvened eah semester to review a set of modules and ourses and provide quality assurane. Key staff, inluding module and ourse leturers, attend these meetings and student input is reeived via your StARs. 3.8 Students views on modules and ourses Students views are obtained by a variety of means suh as fous groups and web-based questionnaires. While staff welome informal feedbak from students, Module Leturers produe formal monitoring reports whih over areas suh as teahing, student feedbak and assessment. Reports and ation points agreed are available from both module and ourse reviews.

19 SOURCES OF INFORMATION AND ADVICE 4.1 Undergraduate Offie All students are alloated to an Undergraduate Offie and a Personal Aademi Adviser. During the Welome Programme, you will be informed of the Undergraduate Offie for your ourse (this information is also detailed on your offer letter) and the member of teahing staff who is to be your Personal Aademi Adviser (PAA). The Undergraduate Offie is the key administrative servie to support you in your studies throughout your time at the University. It will be here that you go with timetable queries, to plan your modules, to hand in your oursework, to ollet letters you may need, and to ask any questions about your studies. Even if it is not the offie you need, the staff will be able to diret you to the right offie or servie. You should also ontat your Undergraduate Offie in relation to the following issues: Queries about your enrolment status, the fees that you have been harged or if you have not reeived your student loan; Module Registration and queries about your timetable or the requirements for your ourse; If your ID ard is not working; The results for you modules, inluding result queries, laims for mitigating irumstanes, appeals, and advie about examination arrangements; Advie on laiming redit for previous study or experiene; Appliations to the Aess to Learning Fund and information about University bursaries (a bursary is a grant made to full-time students by the University that does not have to be repaid); Obtain standard letters and ounil tax exemption ertifiates; Visa extension letters for international students; Advie on the onsequenes of withdrawing from your ourse. Eah group of ourses has a Course Administrator and you will beome familiar with them throughout your time at the University. Your Undergraduate Offie will also ontat you if you are missing lasses or not submitting work on time. The offies are open throughout the aademi year but an also be ontated by phone or see When ontating your Undergraduate Offie, please always quote your student number as it enables staff to aess your information quikly and so respond to your query. 4.2 Personal Aademi Advisers (PAAs) As part of the Welome Programme for your ourse you will meet your Personal Aademi Adviser. This person, who is a member of teahing staff from the faulty responsible for your ourse, will take responsibility for your progress and is the person with whom you should disuss any aademi onerns that you may have. PAAs advise students on the following range of issues: Programme planning, module registration and related matters; Areditation of Prior Learning appliations; Progression and the requirements for awards; Learning development and the support available to students from other agenies within the University; Personal Development Planning and the development of employability; Reovery plans for people who need to repeat part of their studies or who are falling behind with assessed work; They also authorise omplex programmes of studies.

20 15 PAAs work losely with the Undergraduate Offie and spend part of their time in the offie working with Course Administrators to support students; appointments with your PAA an be made via the offie. You are enouraged to make regular ontat with your PAA through the year, and meetings will be most frequent during your first year of study, to assist you in settling in and to help you understand the requirements made of you during assessment. You will be advised when formal meetings are required but feel free to ontat your PAA whenever you need to disuss or seek advie on any issues affeting your studies or your progress. Your Personal Aademi Adviser may refer you to Student Servies or the Learning Development Unit for extra learning support. Your PAA an also at as a referee for a job appliation. 4.3 Course Leader Your Course Leader is responsible for the day-to-day organisation of your ourse. They will work losely with your Personal Aademi Adviser if you are having diffiulties with any part of the ourse, as well as with the Course Administrator in the Undergraduate Offie. 4.4 Module Leturers Module leturers are members of aademi staff who lead the modules ontributing to your programme of study and are key to your learning experiene. They should be your first port of all for aademi advie on any topis you do not understand following a leture or seminar. All Module leturers have offie hours these are set times during the week when they are available for onsultation. For eah module there will be a Module Booklet. The module leturer and your seminar tutors also onfirm your attendane at lasses eah week and you an view the data they submit via your Evision aount. 4.5 Student Suess through Learning Development Some students may need extra help with their studies, sometimes for a partiular module, or, more generally, aross their programme. This might inlude help with presentations, essay writing and ritial analysis. It is always best to seek help in good time and to take advantage of the range of additional lasses, ourses and resoures available. For the full range of study and skills programmes and to find out more about the Learning Development Unit, please visit: Student Servies We provide a range of advie, information, guidane and ounselling servies to support you in ahieving your aademi aims, We provide advie on issues inluding. Aademi Finanial Personal Faith Careers/employment Disability Aommodation Student development Extra urriular ativities Visit our web site to find out how we an help you make your time at London Met both enjoyable and suessful